"There is something sticking up over there," Castor said, pointing north. The object was a rounded dome swelling up above the extremely near horizon - an horizon only two hundred yards away for Castor's height of eye: The dome looked enormous but it grew rapidly smaller as they approached it and finally got it entirely above the horizon. The sharp curvature of the little globe played tricks on them; it was so small that it was possible to see that it was curved, but the habit of thinking of anything over the horizon as distant stayed with them.

Before they reached the dome they encountered one of the steel walking strips running across their path, and on it a man. He was spacesuited as they were and was carrying with ease a large coil of steel line, a hand-powered winch, and a ground anchor with big horns. Roger Stone stopped him. "Excuse me, friend but could you tell me the way to the R.S. War God? Berths thirty-two and -three, I believe she is."

Off east there. Just follow this strip about five miles; you'll raise her. Say, are you from the Rolling Stone?"

" Yes. I'm her master. My name's Stone, too."

"Glad to know you, Captain. I'm just on my way out to respot your ship. You'll find her in berth thirteen, west of here when you come back."

The twins looked curiously at the equipment he was carrying. "Just with that?" asked Castor, thinking of the ticklish problem it had been to move the Stone on Luna.

"Did you leave your gyros running?" asked the port jockey.

"Yes," answered Captain Stone.

"I won't have any trouble. See you around." He headed out to the ship. The family party turned east along the strip; the traction afforded by their boot magnets against steel made much easier walking. Hazel put Lowell down and let him run.

They were walking toward Mars, a great arc of which filled much of the eastern horizon. The planet rose appreciably as they progressed; like Earth in the Lunar sky Mars never rose nor set for any particular point of the satellite's surface - but they were moving over the curve of Phobos so rapidly that theff own walking made it rise. About a mile farther along Meade spotted the bow of the War God silhouetted against the orange-red face of Mars. They hurried, but it was another three miles before they had her in sight down. to her fins.

At last they reached her - to find a temporary barrier of line and posts around her and signs prominently displayed:

"WARNING! - QUARANTINE - no entrance by order of Phobos Port Authority."

I can t read," said Hazel.

Roger Stone pondered it 'The rest of you stay here, or go for a walk - whatever you please. I'm going in. Mind you stay off the field proper."

"Shucks," answered Hazel, "there's plenty of time to see a ship coming in and run for it, the way they float in here. That's all the residents do. But don't you want me to come with you, boy?"

"No its my pidgin." He left them at the barrier, went toward the liner. They waited. Hazel passed the time by taking a throat lozenge from her gun and popping it in through her mouth valve; she gave one to Lowell. Presently they saw Roger walk up the side of the ship to a view port. He stayed there quite a whlle, then walked down again.

When he got back to them his face was stormy. Hazel said 'No go, I take it?"

"None at all. Oh, I saw Van and he rapped out some irrele­vant insults. But he did let me see Edith - through the port"

"How did she look?"

"Wonderful, just wonderful! A little bit thinner perhaps, but not much. She blew a kiss for all of you." He paused and frowned. "But I can't get in and I can't get her out."

"You can't blame Van," Hazel pointed out. "It would mean his ticket."

"I'm not blaming anybody! I'm just mad, that's all."

"Well, what next?"

He thought about it. "The rest of you do what you like for the next hour or so. I'm going to the administration building - it's that dome back there. I'll meet you all at the ship - berth thirteen."

The twins elected to walk on east while Meade and Hazel returned at once to the ship Buster was getting restless. The boys wanted a really good look at Mars. They had watched it through the Stone's ports, of course, on the approach - but this was different... more real, somehow - not framed like a television shot. Three more miles brought all of it in sight, or all of it that was illuminated, for the planet was in half phase to them, the Sun being at that point almost overhead.

They studied the ruddy orange deserts, the olive green fertile stretches, the canals stretching straight as truth across her fiat landscape. The south polar cap was tipped slightly toward them; it had almost disappeared. Facing them was the great arrowhead of Syrtis Major.

They agreed that it was beautiful, almost as beautiful as Luna - more beautiful perhaps than Earth in spite of Earth's spectacular and always changing cloud displays. But after a while they grew bored with it and headed back to the ship.

They found berth thirteen without trouble and walked up into the ship. Meade had dinner ready; Hazel was playing with Buster. Their father came in just as they were ready to eat. "You," announced Hazel, "looked as if you had bribed a chair-warmer."

"Not quite." He hesitated, then said, "I'm going into quaran­tine with Edith. I'll come out when she does."

"But Daddy -" protested Meade.

"I'm not through. While I'm gone Hazel takes command. She is also head of this family."

"I always have been," Hazel said smugly.

"Please, Mother. Boys, if she finds it necessary to break your arms, please be advised that the action is authorised in advance. You understand me?"

"Yes sir. - "Aye aye, sir."

"Good. I'm going to pack now and leave."

"But Daddy!" Meade objected, almost in tears, "aren't you going to wait for dinner?"

He stopped and smiled. "Yes, sugar pie. You are getting to be a good cook, did you know?"

Castor glanced at Pollux, then said, "Uh, Dad, let me get this straight We are simply to wait here in the ship - on this under-sized medicine ball until you and Mother get out of hock?"

"Why, yes - no, that isn't really necessary. I simply hadn't thought about it. If Hazel is willing, you can close down the ship and go down to Mars. Phone us your address and we'll join you there. Yes, I guess that's the best scheme."

The twins sighed with relief.

Roger Stone promptly caught the epidemic disease and had to be nursed through it - and thereby extended the quarantine time It gave the twins that much more time in which to exer­cise their talent for trouble. The truncated family went from Phobos down to Marsport by shuttle - not the sort of shuttle operating between Pikes Peak and Earth's station, but little glider rockets hardly more powerful than the ancient German war rockets. Mars' circular-orbit speed is only a trifle over two miles per second.

Nevertheless the fares were high... and so were freight charges The twins had unloaded their cargo, moved it to the freight lots between the customs shed and the administration building and arranged for it to follow them down, all before they boarded the shuttle. They had been horrified when they were presented with the bill - payable in advance. It had come to more than the amount they had paid their father for the added ship's costs of boosting the bicycles all the way to Mars.

Castor was still computing their costs and possible profits as the five Stones were strapping down for the trip down to Marsport. "Pol, he said fretfully, "we'd better by a darn sight get a good price for those bikes."

"We will, Grandpa, we will. They're good bikes."